Chapter 408: Blood, Honor, And Glory [Part 1]

From the seats of honor overlooking the arena stage, Leone and the other chieftains of the Borderlands glanced at the young men on the stage.

All eight of them stood proud and tall representing their respective tribes.They were under the age of twenty-five and undoubtedly the strongest in their generation.

The tournament would officially commence today, and everyone eagerly waited for the ceremonies to start.

As the current Regent of Eden, Godwin stood up and gave a speech first.

"Today is a special day," Godwin said. "In the past couple years, we chieftains had resorted to various means to attain the title of Barbarian King. Some used foul methods. Some fought in the dark.

"But that ends now. The threat looming upon us requires all of us to unite under one banner. It is finally time for us to put aside our differences and settle this matter once and for all."

The Chieftain of the Warclaw Tribe then made a gesture, prompting the warriors behind him to open the door.

At that moment, a young lady wearing a ceremonial dress appeared and took the position beside her father.

The moment the Oracle of the Warclaw Tribe appeared, a resounding cheer thundered across the venue.

All the young warriors were captivated by the beauty of Tianna, who was referred to as the jewel of the Warclaw Tribe.

"The champion of this tournament shall receive the honor of having my daughter’s hand in marriage," Godwin declared. "So, I look forward to the courage and boldness of the participants gathered today."

The young warriors couldn’t help but envy the eight people representing the eight tribes of the Borderlands.

By tomorrow, one of them would be officially declared as Tianna’s fiance, a role many would kill to have.

Zorren eyed the beautiful lady with an arrogant gaze. He had already considered Tianna as his woman, certain that no one would beat him in the tournament.

"As expected of the lady who will soon become my wife," Zorren said with a smile. "I’ll be sure to enjoy her in bed as well."

"Shut up before I break your neck, Zorren," Tristan, the representative of the Warclaw Tribe, said icily. "I won’t allow you to disrespect Lady Tianna!"

"You’re the one who should shut up, Tristan." Zorren sneered back. "Don’t worry. I’ll make sure to embrace her while you watch. I want you to see just how I defile your goddess."

"You bastard!" Tristan took a step forward to teach Zorren a lesson, but a wooden staff blocked his path.

"Settle your dispute later when you fight in the arena," Gundar said calmly.

Tristan clicked his tongue in response, but decided to back down quietly. Just like Tianna, he also respected the great shaman of the Borderlands.

But, as he backed down, he noticed something.

The young man standing beside him had blood dripping down from his clenched fists.

"Are you alright?" Tristan asked. "Your hands are bleeding."

"I’m fine," Jason replied. "Thank you for the concern."

If Tristan hadn’t stepped up earlier, Jason might have already attacked Zorren out of anger.

He only managed to hold himself back thanks to a voice that directly sounded inside his head.

"Calm down, Jason," Leone said through telepathy. "You can destroy him when you face him in the arena later."

His Great Chieftain’s voice snapped him out of his rage, helping him calm down a bit.

He then looked up to the VIP seats where Leone was seated and saw his Great Chieftain nod in his direction.

Jason nodded back before shifting his gaze toward the Oracle of the Warclaw Tribe.

It had been years since he last saw her. She was already quite a beauty back then, but now, she had become even more stunning.

For the briefest of moments, Tianna looked in his direction.

This only lasted for a few seconds, for she lowered her head and waited for her father to finish his speech.

All the chieftains managed to hear Zorren’s provocative words, but none of them said anything to him.

The warriors of the Borderlands could say whatever they wanted to say, but only if they could back it up with their strength.

If Zorren won the tournament, that proved he was strong enough to overcome the opposition and win Tianna as part of the prize in the tournament.

Godwin was truly cunning.

Since he decided to marry off his daughter to the champion of the tournament, he’d end up forming a strong tie with the tribe the victor belonged to.

Even if the Warclaw Tribe didn’t win the tournament, he and the Barbarian King would still have a very deep bond through marriage.

He would win either way.

"Everyone, please draw a ball from this box," Gundar said calmly as he presented the ballot box to everyone. "The ones who draw the same number will fight against each other."

This was the fairest method they could think of to decide the matches.

"I’ll draw first," Zorren stated. "A little piece of advice. If you pick the same number as me, just concede right away. Otherwise, I can’t guarantee you’ll leave the arena alive."

Tristan and Jason watched as Zorren put his hand inside the box. Both of them wished to pull the same number as the arrogant representative so they could beat the crap out of him sooner.

"One." Zorren showed the ball to Gundar, and the shaman nodded in acknowledgement.

"Next," Gundar said.

This time, Tristan stepped up and drew the ball inside the box.

"Four," Tristan said with disappointment.

"You got lucky," Zorren commented. "If you were paired with me, you would have died."

Tristan ignored the arrogant bastard and moved to the side.

Jason was the next one to draw the ball. Unfortunately, he drew number three.

The next one to step forward was someone nobody had expected to join the tournament.

It was none other than Troy’s second son, Byron.

The chubby man put his hand inside the ballot box and took out a ball that had the number two on it.

"You must really hate your son, Troy," Hagen said. "Did you send him there to die?"

Troy didn’t reply. He only smirked and watched his son return to his spot. After a while, he shifted his attention toward Leone, who was also looking at him.

Both chieftains stared at each other for a few seconds before redirecting their gaze back to the arena.

Of course, Hagen and Godwin noticed this exchange, but they had no idea what it meant.

When all the other representatives finished drawing the balls from the box, the match-up was soon finalized.

—————

Grimhowl Tribe vs. Grimfang Tribe

Darkmane Tribe vs. Sandreaver Tribe

Aslan Tribe vs. Ironhide Tribe

Warclaw Tribe vs. Redmaw Tribe

—————

"The chieftains have all agreed that today, everyone will fight until the last two finalists are decided," Gundar declared. "Regardless of the injuries one suffers during their battle, the winner will have to fight the next round. Fortunately, the Chieftain of the Aslan Tribe has promised to use his ability to heal the representatives’ injuries so they could fight once more."

The chieftains of the high-ranking tribes unanimously voted that all the battles should continue until the last two finalists were decided.

All of them thought of the same thing.

Holding the semi-finals tomorrow would give the semi-finalists and their respective tribes time to strategize counters against their opponents.

By using this method, it would prevent that from happening.

Hagen was the one who proposed this condition, and Godwin supported him.

Troy followed suit. With the three chieftains voting for it, the rest accepted the condition.

Everyone, except for the combatants, left the arena.

Gundar then stated the rules of the tournament.

"The match will be over when one of the two concedes, loses consciousness, or can no longer fight," Gundar declared. "Killing is permitted, so if you wish to back out now, do so before I declare for the battle to start."

Tournaments in the Borderlands had always been a deathmatch.

However, the representatives of the high-ranking tribes usually spared those of the same rank as them to prevent any ill feelings.

If anything, the only ones who incurred a loss were the middle-ranked tribes and the low-ranking tribes.

All of their representatives would always be killed to serve as an example to everyone. A power move to say that only those with power had the right to stand on the arena alongside the high-ranking tribes.

"Hey, you should concede while you still have the chance," Zorren said to the representative of the Grimfang Tribe. "Our tribes may share the same origin, but in my eyes, you and the rest of your people are trash."

"You really have a filthy mouth just as the rumors say," Kargan of the Grimfang Tribe replied. "If I feared death, I wouldn’t have agreed to join this tournament."

The warriors of the Grimfang Tribe cheered their representative on because they always had this rivalry with the Grimhowl Tribe.

Both tribes used to be one, but after Hagen became the Chieftain of the Grimhowl Tribe, those who didn’t recognize him left to form another tribe of their own.

And thus, the Grimfang Tribe was born.

Hearing the cheers, Zorren sneered and once again mocked his opponent.

"Do you have a lover back home?" Zorren asked him in a teasing tone. "You should tell me her name. That way, I can make her my concubine and make her forget you in a single night."

"There’s no need for me to tell you her name." Kargan held his war axe and took a fighting stance. "Because you will die here today."

"Hahahaha!" Zorren laughed out loud while covering his eyes with his hand. "I was already expecting this to happen, but seeing it in reality is really funny. You are just as delusional as your tribe. All of you are losers."

Seeing that the two fighters seemed eager to fight, Gundar finally declared the start of the battle.

"Fight!" Gundar shouted.

And with his declaration, the tournament that would decide the fate of the Borderlands officially began.